NACD Praises Passage of STB Reform Legislation

ARLINGTON, Va., Dec. 10, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, National Association of Chemical Distributors (NACD) President Eric R. Byer made the following statement about the U.S. House of Representatives' passage of S. 808, the Surface Transportation Board (STB) Reauthorization Act of 2015, which the U.S. Senate passed earlier this year:

"NACD welcomes the House's sweeping passage of this important and long overdue freight rail reform legislation. We thank the bill's authors, Chairman John Thune (R-SD) and Ranking member Bill Nelson (D-FL) of the Senate Commerce Committee, for their tireless efforts to craft bipartisan legislation that would make modest reforms to the Surface Transportation Board.

"With the dramatic changes in the rail sector since the Staggers Act, it is critical we re-evaluate and modernize our rail policy framework to meet present and future needs. We strongly believe that modest reforms to our outdated rail policies today will lead to less government intervention later. Passage of this important legislation will have a real, positive impact on chemical distributors and other industries that rely on freight rail to ship and receive goods.

"NACD now urges the President to swiftly sign S. 808 into law to improve the efficiency and efficacy of the Surface Transportation Board."

NACD and its 440 member companies are vital to the chemical supply chain providing products to over 750,000 end users. NACD members are leaders in health, safety, security, and environmental performance through implementation of Responsible Distribution, established in 1991 as a condition of membership and a third-party-verified management practice. For more information, visit www.NACD.com.